Saradha scam: CBI arrests ex-youth Cong leader

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday arrested a former Youth Congress leader and carried out searches at 60 locations as part of its probe against the Artha Tatwa Group (ATG), that was named as an accused in the Saradha chit-fund scam cases lodged by the agency.

The premises of a Biju Janata Dal (BJD) legislator Prabhat Tripathy was also searched.

Sambit Kuntia, the arrested ex-leader, who is allegedly linked with the group, had been evading arrest for nearly a month, said a CBI source.

"When our team reached his Bhubaneswar home his wife and mother claimed that he was not at home. But we found him hiding in his house’s backyard," said the source.

The agency will ascertain if any local official had helped the accused at a time he was evading arrest, said the source.

The searches, during which the agency seized incriminating documents linked to the money-trail in the scam, were carried out at 58 locations.

Tripathy, who was the chief whip of BJD in the last state assembly, told HT, "I was not home when the raids were conducted...however, let me make it clear that I have no relation with any chit fund company."

Other searches in Odisha also included those at the premises of a newspaper-proprietor Bikash Swain, the secretary of the Odisha Cricket Association A Behera and the ATG chairman and managing director Pradip Shetty.